#1 Ranked-choice Voting (RCV): Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Arizona, Missouri, Montana, Alaska, and D.C. have RCV on the line this election. Vehemently opposed by the Republican National Committee, RCV allows voters to rank candidates in order of preference. Instant runoffs can reallocate your votes to your second choice, then third, and so on.
#2 Noncitizen Voting: North Carolina, South Carolina, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin will determine if people without U.S. citizenship can vote in state and local elections. These decisions will come after false, dog-whistle claims by Donald Trump about “widespread” voting by noncitizen immigrants.
#3 Prison Slavery: A long-overdue reparation for Black Americans post-slavery, California’s Proposition 6 may remove the prohibition on “involuntary servitude except to punish crime” from its constitution. If passed, this measure would ban slavery entirely.
Many incarcerated people may still want to work. But instead of being forced to make license plates, fight fires, or clean kitchens for cents an hour, 40,000 Californians could decide on time for opportunities like rehabilitation programs. And, people wouldn’t face punishments like years-long parole delays just for missing a shift.
It’s important to know the ballot measures in your area and nationwide, from the ones listed to ones on issues like abortion and minimum wage. Still, these measures are sobering reminders that, though the “who” and “what” on our ballots change, every U.S. election coerces us into renegotiating our own humanity.